Travels

For almost two years now, my husband and I have shunned from travel and relaxation. We just got so busy with our daily lives, being new parents, exploring new jobs and generally adjusting to our new kind of life. I am honestly having some issues including health ones from not taking a break.

Finally, we have decided to take a weekend off. We picked somewhere near and have easy access because we have to be home by the time work starts. I was so excited and up for the slight planning of our trip but so shocked of how much we brought for our daughter. It ranges from the nappies, sterilizers, baby bottles, water bottles, her soap, her dishwashing cleanser, her brushes, vitamins, maintenance medications, etc. How much do toddlers actually need? I am hoping this is just a stage.

From our city in Iligan, my husband and daughter fetched me from work in Initao and had lunch in Panagatan, a seaside restaurant located in Opol, Misamis Oriental. She wanted to jump in the water and swim with the fishes, luckily, she got distracted by the food. I have never seen her so excited before. I mean we go to Cagayan de Oro a few times to do some errands but I think she can sense that this is a different kind of trip. Maybe she can sense that we are super excited, too.

Asking people for directions was the kind of thing my husband like. I am a little techy, so I used my phone’s GPS and he laughed so hard when it prompted him to turn left or right. He funnily joked around and said that it will somehow prompt him to go home while doing his happy hour.

It is a 40-minute drive from Cagayan de Oro although it is located in Bukidnon. You know when you drive from the city and it changes location to a province and the air changes, like it mellows down and became cooler although we can literally see the city behind. The drive felt like that. And I never felt like that for a long time.

I just wanted to pop out the car and take some picture, if not for my daughter who is sleeping beside and grabbing my hand. So I just enjoyed the greeneries and the bodies of water while I am holding her hand thinking how she have grown so big. I thanked the Father countless time for His glorious creations and for our lives.
We arrived but not without my heart pumping to the 1st gear only roads. Yes, it has been a long time since that sense of fear and excitement with the feeling of relief when you finally arrived. Fresh air, cool view and finally sometime to ourselves.

We reserved a double bed room. It was so simple but I liked their glass door installments. It made the room felt so big and I so loved that I can see the greeneries. Marley explored the room and she inexplicably loved it. She loved that she can climb up and down the bed. She owned the room like a boss.

We just slept for the afternoon and went strolling when the sun came down. My girl was ecstatic especially when she saw a pony. She laughed at how it neighed. She actually wants to pet it but we were afraid to touch it.

We had dinner at their restaurant and opted to do night swimming but it was too chilly and Marley was shivering so hard that upon 5 minutes of swimming we stopped and returned in the morning. This is the highlight of the resort, their infinity pool. It is relaxing overlooking Cagayan de Oro and Bukidnon. Though the water is chlorinated, we did enjoy a lot and my daughter’s happiness while flapping in the water was something that money can’t buy.

For the rest of the morning we had breakfast, strolled around, met some new acquaintances and swam until she got to too tired to even climbed to bed. And from there, we ended our travel and head home. With our heart and soul recharged after a long time of a break-less-monotonous-life.

From this trip, I have relearned that sometimes taking a time-off and spending some money on a trip is not bad. We were different when we came back home. It felt like we reconnected and my daughter loved us even more. This is something she will definitely she will look back on. Hoping it will be one of the many.